Become a Waterwise Landscape Expert

When Diane Downey first
moved to California from her home in England, she was thrilled by the
many ways in which she could indulge her passion for gardening. “I was
amazed by all the beautiful plants I could grow,” says Downey. “I was
like a kid in a candy store.”

But she soon saw those plants in a new
light. “I realized that just because I could grow them, doesn’t mean I
should. The area we live in is naturally a desert. The water supply is
tenuous and there are so many issues surrounding it. It made me aware
that we need to do everything we can to use water as sensibly as
possible.”

Downey started The Yard Fairy, an award-winning landscape
design, installation and maintenance company based in San Diego. She
made water conservation a top priority.

She’s not
alone. A growing number of green industry professionals are following
their own ethics and consumer demand by focusing on water efficiency in
the landscape.

Becoming a waterwise landscape or irrigation
professional isn’t just good for the environment; it can be great for
business. Today’s conservation-oriented homeowners are paying attention
to their environmental impact. Consumers are also feeling the pinch of
rising water bills, even in places with abundant supplies.

Companies
everywhere are responding. For example, KB Home, a major national
builder, recently announced plans to participate in the EPA WaterSense
home labeling program. WaterSense-labeled homes are inspected and
certified to use 20 percent less water than typical new homes.
Water-efficient landscapes and irrigation systems feature big in the EPA
WaterSense criteria.

“Based on a survey process, we
understand that homebuyers are looking for environmentally friendly
homes that reduce their carbon footprint and offer substantial savings
in the cost to operate the home over the long term,” says Craig
LeMessurier, director of corporate communications at KB Home.

The more hardscape you
have, the less you have to water but don't overdo it...put in plenty of
plants because they can reduce the heat-island effect"

If you haven’t felt the water conservation trend in your area
yet, you will. Contractors who are proficient in waterwise landscaping
and irrigation have an edge in this green-oriented market.

Designing
for efficiency

As Downey points out, there’s no one
silver bullet for building a water-efficient landscape. It takes a
series of steps, technologies and even new attitudes to create outdoor
spaces that offer breathtaking beauty without gulping water.

The
initial landscape design is one of the most important factors. “If the
designer is basing decisions purely on aesthetics and doesn’t have a
clue about the water needs of plants, you can run into problems,” says
Gregg Catanese, G. Catanese Landscape Services, Saratoga, California.

Instead
of choosing plants first and building an irrigation system to support
them, the landscape and irrigation system should be designed in tandem.
At the most basic level, this means grouping plants with similar
moisture requirements together, enabling turf areas to be watered
separately from planting beds, and integrating drip irrigation where
feasible.

“The biggest thing is thinking as far ahead of the project as
possible about the resources you’ll use,” says Lorin Unterberger,
president of Waterwise Land and Waterscapes, Fort Collins, Colorado. He
and other water-conscious designers reserve the highest water-use plants
for areas near the house where people can most enjoy them.

“We ask clients where
they’re going to spend their time,” says Unterberger. “We might include
courtyard areas that will be more heavily watered and design the rest of
the yard for curb appeal. These areas will still be attractive but they
won’t use as much water as the areas where people will be dining or
entertaining.”

He
says it’s not about shoving environmentalism down the client’s throat
but about making wise decisions. “We’re not asking people to be ascetics
or something. We want to create the experience they’re looking for
without wasting water.”

Suitable plants

Choosing an appropriate plant palette is
essential, says Downey. In her area, that might mean opting for all
California natives or bending the rules and going for other
Mediterranean-climate plants. For her, widespread use of tropical or
rain-forest type plants just doesn’t make sense.

Appealing Gardens
Landscape, Dallas, Texas, is a sustainabilityfocused landscape design
and installation firm that relies heavily on native plantings. Natives
generally use less water because they’ve adapted over many years to the
rainfall patterns of a particular geography.

“Choosing the plant is the biggest part of
it,” says Keith Pulliam, owner. “I try to use plants that are actually
indigenous to the Texas Blackland Prairie.”

Pulliam says he used to
take a more traditional approach. “I’d buy plants at the local nursery
and design and build what customers wanted. What they wanted was what
their neighbors had. Now I cater to my clients but I educate them as
well.”

After
installing some native landscapes for another designer, Pulliam decided
sustainable landscaping was more in keeping with his own land ethic. In
this era where green is the new gold, this change has been good for
business. “It’s surprising; I tell people what I do and they say,
‘That’s just what I want.’” While some of his clients actively pursue
drought-tolerant landscaping, others simply want a good looking yard.
“With a sustainable landscape you can accomplish that and still save
water,” says Pulliam.

Re-thinking lawns

While there’s still a place for that stretch of
emerald green on many American properties, a growing number of
homeowners are widening their definition of yard to include a
combination of grass, hardscapes, paths, mulches, dry river beds, and
low-water-use groundcover.

“We take out a lot more lawn than we put in,” says Downey. A
landscape that integrates diverse materials uses less water and also
adds visual interest and functionality. With good design, an inviting
series of outdoor rooms and paths accented by plantings will often see
more use than an endless expanse of green.

“Make sure your hardscape areas are sized
appropriately for the number of people,” cautions Downey.

“The more hardscape you
have, the less you have to water, but don’t overdo it. I like to put in
plenty of plants because they can reduce the heat-island effect.”

Unterberger points out
that in some cases property owners can actually conserve water by
replacing lawn area with an efficient water feature. “Many of the
landscapes out here (in Colorado) are very eastern, with a lot of
bluegrass and big trees for shade. I try to get people to use a
recycling water feature in place of a lot of that grass. In the same
given space, a water feature will use 30 to 50 percent of the water it
takes to irrigate bluegrass.”

He likes to replace the area around the water feature
with a xeric landscape. Clients are open to this because they no longer
need the cool, lushness of grass. That need has been satisfied with the
water feature.

Talking dirt

Downey points out that
proper soil preparation is also a must for a

water-efficient
landscape. Soil with good structure absorbs and holds water more
effectively.

“In
our area, we have either heavy clay or sand,” says Downey. “The solution
to both problems is to mix organic matter into the soil and mulch on
top. Soils develop an oily surface after a time and don’t absorb water
well. Mulch absorbs the moisture and then releases it into the soil.”

Making the most
of technology

When landscapes do require supplemental watering, today’s smart
irrigation tools can make a well-designed landscape even more efficient.

Smart controllers, soil moisture sensors, drip irrigation and low
precipitation sprinklers are just a few of the tools contractors can use
to build water conscious landscapes.

Adding a rain sensor is one of the easiest ways
to streamline a system. These economical devices simply interrupt the
irrigation schedule when they detect adequate rainfall. While it may
seem like a no-brainer, many systems don’t include them. The sight of a
sprinkler watering the lawn on a rainy day makes neighbors (and
responsible irrigation professionals) cringe.

“Some people in our area
simply turn their systems off during the rainy season,” says Catanese.
“But rain sensors are especially helpful when people are away from home
during the transition times between seasons.”

He cautions that they only
help if they’re placed in an appropriate location. “I’ve seen some
pretty dumb installations. If they’re under an overhang or a tree,
that’s not going to work.”

Smart controllers go further. These use external weather and
other data to estimate the moisture available to plants. They then
“decide” whether to water based on this information. Some gather data
from onsite weather stations to determine evapo-transpiration rates; some use data
gathered remotely from nearby weather stations; others rely on
historical data. All are designed to reduce water consumption by basing
irrigation on actual plant needs versus simple timing.

But as with other
technology, smart controllers are only as smart as the people
installing, using or maintaining them. Some require programming with
site conditions and other data. “They won’t be smart if you don’t
‘teach’ them correctly,” says Catanese. “As they say, ‘garbage in,
garbage out.’” Putting a smart controller on a problematic irrigation
system won’t automatically make it more efficient. In fact, in some
cases it can make it worse.

“I’ve seen too many people who think an ET controller
makes them water conservationists,” says Peter Hingle, irrigation
consultant and owner of Remote Pigtails, a Texas-based company offering
pigtails for irrigation remotes. “It is really the last element to
consider and sometimes increases the waste on an existing system. In a
system with low head drainage problems, the multi-cycling of an ET
controller can create a lot of runoff.”

Soil moisture sensors are becoming more widely
available for use in landscape irrigation. These are designed to
determine actual moisture levels in the soil and feed that information
to the controller. They interrupt irrigation when moisture levels are
adequate and allow watering when moisture levels are low.

While this technology
is relatively new in residential and small commercial applications, its
use is growing. “Soil sensors get to the whole issue of irrigation,”
says Hingle. “What is the soil moisture and do I need to add water?”
Thoughtful placement of moisture sensors is important. In properties
where soil moisture content typically varies from one
spot to another, multiple sensors are sometimes used. After
installation, troubleshooting and follow up by a knowledgeable
professional helps ensure the sensor is placed appropriately and is
functioning as intended.

Improving the way water is delivered is another strategy. Drip
systems can dramatically improve efficiency in planting beds and in some
subsurface turf applications. High-efficiency nozzles are improving
overhead watering as well.

“Lower precipitation nozzles are really proving themselves,”
says Catanese. These products use less water than conventional spray
heads and deliver water more evenly. Water is applied at a rate that
plants and turf can absorb to reduce runoff. They are less affected by
wind and can reduce water lost to misting.

Catanese points out that even minor
improvements can make a big difference. “Using check valves to eliminate
low-head drainage can save a substantial amount of water, especially on
commercial sites. Pressure regulation is something that gets overlooked
a lot. Heads need to be operating at the correct pressure to get the
right-sized droplets or you lose water to misting.”

In addition to improved
irrigation, some water conscious contractors are adding rainwater
harvesting systems to their list of services. Some, like Downey, contour
the yard to direct rainfall to trees and plants or add rain gardens to
capture rainwater and keep it onsite.

Stay tuned up and tuned in

A poorly maintained system
can quickly undermine conservation efforts. “Monitoring, maintenance and
repairs are crucial for water conservation,” says Catanese. “A system
could be well designed and installed, but if it’s not maintained and
repaired properly it won’t save.”

Many smart controllers and other water-saving devices
require extra monitoring and adjustment, especially early on. “The
smarter a system gets, the more time you need to fine-tune it,” says
Unterberger.

This
means you and your employees need to stay educated on the latest
advances in irrigation technology. Professional organizations, trade
shows, training seminars, conferences and trade periodicals can all
help. Businesses that take full advantage of training opportunities will
continue to lead the way in creating sensible, sustainable landscapes.